APS Diplomat Recorder articles from April 2003

APS Diplomat Recorder archives from April 2003

ARABS-ISRAEL - March 30 - Suicide Bomber Blasts Crowded Mall.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... A Palestinian suicide bomber blows himself up at lunchtime in a crowded pedestrian mall near the Cafe London in Netanya, wounding at least 30 people. (This is the first such attack since the March 20 start of a US-led war on Iraq. The last...

ARABS-ISRAEL - April 2 - Army Grabs Hundreds In Tulkarm.
April 5, 2003... Israeli troops backed by gunships and tanks round up hundreds of men in Tulkarm. Soldiers encircle the town with barbed wire to prevent Palestinians from leaving as they search homes. All but seven of those detained were later released. The...

ARABS-ISRAEL - April 3 - 10,000 Out In Jenin March.(Palestinian march)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... About 10,000 Palestinians hold a march in the Jenin refugee camp to remember 52 militants and civilians killed a year ago in Israel's Operation Defensive Shield. Meanwhile, four Palestinians are killed by Israeli Defence Forces soldiers early...

ARAB-EUROPEAN RELATIONS - March 31 - Berlin & Paris Discuss Europe's Role In Post-War Iraq.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... French FM Dominique de Villepin meets in Paris with his German counterpart Joschka Fischer to discuss Europe's role in a post-conflict Iraq. The meeting follows the March 30 statements by German Chancellor Gerhard Schroder, in which he stressed...

ARAB-US RELATIONS - March 31 - Rice Lays Out US Vision On M.E.(Condoleezza Rice addresses the American Israel Public Affairs Committee)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... Addressing the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), an influential pro-Israeli lobby group, National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice sets out the "ambitious agenda" of the US to bring about change in the Middle East, including a...

ARAB-US RELATIONS - April 3 - Congress Approves $80 Bn Iraq War Funds.
April 5, 2003... The House of Representatives approves nearly $80 bn to finance the war in Iraq, reward key allies, bolster anti-terrorism efforts and help struggling airlines. (The move comes after the Senate unanimously approved the big emergency spending...

AFGHANISTAN - April 2 - US Forces Bomb Kandahar.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... US military spokesman Col. Roger King says the US-led coalition aircraft have dropped 35,000lbs of ordnance on the Tor Ghar mountains in the southern province of Kandahar. The bombardment marks the latest in a series of offensives against...

EGYPT - March 31 - Mubarak Fears War May Increase Terrorism.(Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... Speaking to officers of the 3rd Army, Pres. Hosni Mubarak says: "I fear this war [against Iraq] will have enormous consequences and lead to an increase in terrorism. When this war ends, there may be 100 Bin Ladens instead of just one. The war...

IRAN - March 30 - Tehran Rejects US Claims Of Meddling In Iraq.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... FM Kamal Kharrazi rejects US allegations that Tehran is interfering in Iraq through an opposition Shia Muslim group and warns the US-led forces that they will suffer more suicide attacks. (His comments come after US Defence Secretary Donald...

IRAQ - March 30 - Coalition Jets Pound Medina Division.
April 5, 2003... Coalition aircraft step up raids on Republican Guard units dug in around Baghdad. The capital is also targeted, with attacks on a training school for the paramilitary Fedayeen, a presidential palace, an intelligence complex and surface-to-air...

IRAQ - March 31 - Sabri Says Withdraw Or Surrender.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... FM Naji Sabri tells a press conference: "The Americans and British have no choice but to withdraw - stop their aggression and withdraw immediately. The presence of their forces will expose them to further heavy casualties. We will destroy these...

IRAQ - March 31 - US Troops Capture Airport At Najaf.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... The 101st Airborne Division seizes Al Najaf airport on the east side of the city and a military school located on a southern approach. The Airport falls with virtually no resistance, while the military school falls after a brief firefight with...

IRAQ - April 1 - Saddam Calls For Holy War Against US.
April 5, 2003... Saddam Hussein calls for a jihad, or holy war, against the US-led invasion. (Hussein does not appear on television in person as has been expected, leaving it to Information Minister Mohammad Saeed Al Sahaf to read his message. His failure to...

IRAQ - April 1 - Rumsfeld Calls For Surrender.(Donald Rumsfeld )(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld calls for Iraq's unconditional surrender, and he joins US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Richard Myers in an unusually spirited defence of the Pentagon plan to defeat the Baghdad regime. Rumsfeld says:...

IRAQ - April 2 - US Within 20 Miles Of Baghdad.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... US Central Command spokesman in Qatar Brig. Gen. Vincent Brooks says US forces, backed by huge air support, advance to within 20 miles of Baghdad. He says: "The dagger is clearly pointing at the heart of the regime right now". US Central...

IRAQ - April 2 - Food Chief Says UN Must Lead Post-War Efforts.(United Nations' World Food Programme executive James Morris)
April 5, 2003... Speaking in a Financial Times interview during a visit to Berlin, UN World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director James Morris says that four weeks after the fighting stops "the WFP will be ready to feed Iraq's entire population of 27m...

IRAQ - April 2 - Blair At Odds With White House Over Post-War Iraq.(reform of the Iraqi government)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... Addressing the British parliament, PM Tony Blair calls for a swift transition to civilian rule after the ousting of Saddam Hussein. (The move highlights disagreement between the UK and US over plans for post-war Iraq. The White House seeks to...

IRAQ - April 3 - US Forces Seize Baghdad Airport.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... US armoured units move to about 6 miles from the edge of Baghdad, with parts of Saddam International airport, 12 miles from the city centre, being occupied by US forces. US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told reporters at the Pentagon: "It...

IRAQ - April 3 - Powell Meets NATO & European Leaders In Brussels.
April 5, 2003... US State Secretary Colin Powell visits Brussels and meets with 22 foreign ministers from NATO and European countries. He holds more than 20 bilateral meetings and attends 3 long sessions - a meeting with the EU top diplomats, a joint NATO/EU...

IRAQ - April 3 - Saddam Statement Asks Iraqis To Continue Fight.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... Information Minister Mohammad Saeed Al Sahaf reads a statement issued in the name of Saddam Hussein, which addresses to the people of the region south-east of Baghdad, saying: "Fight them [US and British forces] with your hands. God will...

KAZAKHSTAN - April 2 - Ex-Mobil Executive Charged Over Kickbacks.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... J. Bryan Williams, a former senior Mobil Oil executive, is indicted by US authorities for failing to report millions of dollars in kickbacks he allegedly received in connection with a $1 bn investment the company made in the Tengiz oilfield....

RUSSIA - April 3 - Muslims Split Over Declaring Jihad.
April 5, 2003... The country's two top Muslim leaders - Supreme Mufti Talgat Tadzhuddin and Chief Mufti Ravil Gainutdin - split over the question of whether to proclaim a jihad against the US. Supreme Mufti Talgat Tadzhuddin, the leader of an Islamic Council...

SYRIA - March 31 - War Of Words With US Escalates.(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... The war of words between Damascus and Washington escalate as the Foreign Ministry says it hopes to "see the invaders defeated in Iraq". (The move comes in response to the speech US National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice gave to the American...

TURKEY - April 2 - Powell Visits.(Colin Powell visits Turkey)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... Speaking during a 1-day visit to Ankara (his first trip abroad since the US-led war on Iraq began), US State Secretary Colin Powell says the two countries have "solved all the outstanding issues" blocking re-supply of US forces through Turkey,...

YEMEN - April 2 - Anti-War Demo.(demonstrations in Yemen)(Brief Article)
April 5, 2003... Some 20,000 Yemenis demonstrate against the war in Iraq, with thousands calling on the government to let them go to Baghdad to fight for Saddam Hussein's regime. About 3,000 protesters march through Sanaa to the Iraqi Embassy, where they...

ARAB AFFAIRS - April 10 - Mubarak Calls For Installation Of Transitional Iraqi Govt.(Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... Meeting Saudi FM Saud Al Faisal in Cairo, Pres. Hosni Mubarak calls for the speedy installation of a transitional government in Iraq. He says a delay in providing water, food and law enforcement in Iraq will cause "unimaginably dangerous...

ARABS-ISRAEL - April 6 - Israeli Stance Casts Doubts On Peace Plan.
April 12, 2003... A report in The FT says: "Israel reiterated its refusal to resume peace negotiations while under Palestinian terrorist fire, casting doubt on the future of a plan being pushed by London, the EU, the UN and some US officials. Dov Weisglass, a...

ARABS-ISRAEL - April 6 - Barghouti's Trial Resumed.(Marwan Barghouti trial in Israel)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... The trial of Marwan Barghouti, Arafat's key lieutenant in the Fatah movement, resumes with 3 Palestinians witnesses refusing to give evidence. They say they do not recognise the court's authority. Israeli prosecutors begin presenting their...

ARABS-ISRAEL - April 8 - Hamas Leaders Die In Air Strike.(Saad Al Arabeed and Ashraf Al Halabi killed)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... Saad Al Arabeed, a senior commander of Hamas' Izz Al Deen Al Qassam armed wing, his deputy Ashraf Al Halabi and three other Palestinians are killed and at least 47 Palestinian civilians are wounded in an air strike on Gaza City. Al Arabeed and...

ARABS-ISRAEL - April 9 - Army Hits Gaza After Attack; Blast Hurts West Bank Students.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... Israeli tanks and armoured vehicles charge into the northern Gaza Strip, near the town of Beit Hanun, killing 5 Palestinians - two policemen, a Hamas militant, a 16-year-old boy and a 21-year-old man. (The incursion comes after Hamas fired two...

ARABS-OPEC - April 7 - Cartel Emergency Meeting Sought.(OPEC meeting to deal with petroleum prices)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... Qatari Oil Minister and OPEC Pres. Abdullah Al Attiyah proposes an emergency meeting of the cartel this month to agree reduced production to halt the recent drop in oil prices. He says he is still awaiting the agreement of the group's other 10...

ARAB-US RELATIONS - April 8 - Bin Laden Calls On Muslims To Mount Suicide Attacks.
April 12, 2003... Al Qaida leader Osama Bin Laden issues a taped message calling on Muslims to mount suicide attacks against the US and its allies in response to the invasion of Iraq by US and British forces. (This is the first message from Bin Laden since Feb....

IRAN - April 8 - Khatami Voted More Powers.
April 12, 2003... The Majlis votes to give more powers to Pres. Mohammad Khatami in a move intended to stop the traditionalist judiciary from dealing with political activists in ways that the reformists say are unconstitutional. The bill, presented by Khatami in...

IRAQ - April 6 - Opposition Groups Reject US Military Rule Plan.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... The main Kurdish and Shia opposition groups reject US plans to put Jay Garner, a retired US general, in charge of running the country after the war is over. Hamid Al Bayati, a senior official of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in...

IRAQ - April 6 - 17 Killed In Friendly Fire Incident.(Kurdish soldiers killed)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... Seventeen Kurdish soldiers are killed and a number of US special forces are injured in the neighbourhood of Pir Daud, a village on the frontline between Mosul and Kirkuk, when US warplanes mistakenly attack their position. (This is the worst...

IRAQ - April 6 - US 'Aims For Legitimate Govt'.
April 12, 2003... US Deputy Defence Secretary Paul Wolfowitz tells NBC television that the administration Washington is setting up in Baghdad is merely a stop gap which will have no long-term role in running the country. He says: "Our goal is to have a...

IRAQ - April 7 - Central Baghdad Stormed.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... The US-led military coalition takes control of key sites in central Baghdad, including a number of presidential palaces and military parade grounds on the west bank of the Tigris. A 5,000-strong brigade of the US 3rd Infantry Division with more...

IRAQ - April 7 - Regime Still Denies US Presence In Baghdad.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... Information Minister Mohammad Saeed Al Sahaf tells reporters in the eastern part of Baghdad: "I've come to give you a picture of the heavy battles under way. They [US officials] are sick in their minds to say that 65 tanks are in the centre of...

IRAQ - April 7 - Rumsfeld Says 'Chemical Ali' Dead.(Ali Hassan Al Majid killed in air strike)
April 12, 2003... US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld tells a Pentagon news briefing that the "reign of terror" of "Chemical Ali" (Ali Hassan Al Majid, Pres. Saddam Hussein's cousin and one of most notorious executioners) "came to an end" when he was killed in...

IRAQ - April 7 - Annan Meets Security Council On Post-War UN Role.
April 12, 2003... UN Sec-Gen. Kofi Annan meets with the UN Security Council's 15 members in an effort to secure a leading role for the UN in the reconstruction of post-war Iraq. Annan told reporters before the meeting: "I do expect the UN to play an important...

IRAQ - April 8 - US Forces Kill 3 Foreign Journalists.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... Three foreign journalists are killed and five injured in Baghdad as their offices in the Palestine Hotel come under fire from US military forces battling to take control of the city centre. (The hotel is where most of about 130 foreign...

IRAQ - April 8 - Bush & Blair Vow 'Vital Role' For UN After War.(UN involvement in Iraq)
April 12, 2003... Meeting in Hillsborough, south of Belfast in Northern Ireland, US Pres. Bush and British PM Tony Blair pledge to grant the UN a "vital role" in post-war Iraq, but Bush describes that role as largely humanitarian and advisory rather than one...

IRAQ - April 9 - Baghdad Falls To US Troops.
April 12, 2003... Crowds of Baghdad residents take to the streets of Baghdad, destroying and looting symbols of Saddam Hussein's regime after organised resistance to the arrival of US forces evaporated. In the city's Firdos square, a large crowd watch and cheer...

IRAQ - April 9 - Japan To Give $100M In Aid.(economic aid to Iraq)
April 12, 2003... Japanese FM Yoriko Kawaguchi says Tokyo is prepared to contribute up to $100m in emergency humanitarian aid for people affected by the war. Tokyo has already designated $25m in rice, medical supplies and other aid. The details for additional...

IRAQ - April 10 - Nightmare Is Over, Bush Tells Iraqis.(President Bush to air speech over Iraqi television)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... US Pres. Bush and British PM Tony Blair take to the Iraqi airwaves, using the newly seized state television facilities to tell the people, in Bush's words, that "the nightmare that Saddam Hussein has brought to your nation will soon be over".

IRAQ - April 10 - Washington Aims For Big Baghdad Debt Write-Off.(US seeking to cancel Iraq foreign debts)
April 12, 2003... US Deputy Defence Secretary Paul Wolfowitz tells a Senate committee that France, Germany and Russia "ought to consider whether it might not be appropriate" to forgive some or all of the debt owed to them by Iraq. Iraqi debt promises to become a...

IRAQ - April 11 - Mosul Falls.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... Kurdish fighters and US troops move into the centre of Mosul, the 3rd largest city. The entire Iraqi 5th Corps surrender in Mosul, according to Capt. Frank Thorp, spokesman at US Central Command in Qatar, who said: "We're in the process of...

RUSSIA - April 6 - Rice In Moscow.(US National Security Advisoer Condoleezza Rice to discuss US-Russian relations)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... US National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice arrives in Moscow for a 1-day trip to hold a "frank exchange of views" over issues straining the US-Russia relationship. (Alleged sales of Russian military equipment to the forces of Saddam Hussein...

RUSSIA - April 6 - Diplomats Come Under Fire In Iraq.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... Nearly two dozen diplomats from the embassy in Baghdad, including Ambassador to Iraq Vladimir Titorekno, and some journalists come under attack as they try to leave Baghdad in an automobile convoy. At least five are wounded. None of the...

RUSSIA - April 11 - Putin Meets Chirac & Schroder.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... Pres. Putin meets French Pres. Jacques Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroder in St. Petersburg. At a briefing, the leaders say they will table the idea of a possible write-off of Iraqi debts at the G8 meeting of leading nations...

SYRIA - April 7 - Azm Says Washington Victory In Iraq Will Be Pyrrhic.
April 12, 2003... Sadeq el Azm, a well-known philosophy professor, who has given lectures around the world, says in Damascus that the US will win the war in Iraq but in terms of its consequences for the Arab World it may have already lost the peace. He asserts:...

SYRIA - April 9 - Rumsfeld Accuses Damascus Of Helping Iraqi Regime.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld accuses Damascus of helping senior members of Saddam Hussein's regime to flee Iraq and, in some cases, allowing them to travel through Syria to other countries. (His warning comes less than a week after he...

TURKEY - April 6 - Ankara Meets Terms For $700M IMF Loan.(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... Economy Minister Ali Babacan says Ankara has finally fulfilled the conditions for obtaining the $700m loan tranche from the IMF. He says he has also signed a letter of intent with the IMF setting out further reforms aimed at fixing shaky public...

TURKEY - April 7 - Gul Denies Shift In Foreign Policy.(Abdullah Gul has contact with governments in Syria and Iran)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... FM Abdullah Gul insists that a flurry of contacts with Iran and Syria over the war in Iraq does not mean the government is forming a tripartite grouping with states viewed with suspicion by the US. (After meeting his Iranian counterpart on...

TURKEY - April 10 - Ankara To Monitor Kurdish Forces.(Turkish military observers sent to Kirkuk)(Brief Article)
April 12, 2003... FM Abdullah Gul says Ankara might send military observers to monitor Kurdish forces in the Iraqi city of Kirkuk, while US officials work feverishly to discourage Ankara from any steps more provocative than that. Gul says he has sought fresh...

ARAB AFFAIRS - April 18 - Ministers Discuss War Aftermath.(foreign ministers of Turkey, Iran, Syria, Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Bahrain)
April 19, 2003... Foreign ministers of Turkey, Iran, Syria, Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Bahrain meet in Riyadh to discuss their response to the US victory in Iraq and US allegations against Syria (see Syria). In a 10-minute opening address, Saudi FM...

ARABS-ISRAEL - April 13 - Israel Would Yield Settlements For Peace.(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... PM Sharon tells Haaretz that Israel would have to remove some settlements to get peace with Palestinians, and calls the fall of Saddam Hussein a chance to end the conflict. Sharon, long a right-wing champion of Jewish settlement on land...

ARAB-US RELATIONS - April 12 - Congress Gives Bush Extra Funds To Cover War Costs.(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... The Congress gives Pres. Bush $4 bn more than he sought for the war in Iraq, but refuses his request to give the White House unprecedented authority over how the funds will be spent. The Congress approves a $79 bn supplemental budget - the...

ARAB-US RELATIONS - April 15 - Forces In Gulf Region To Be Reduced.
April 19, 2003... Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Richard Myers says large numbers of US forces may no longer need to be based in Kuwait or Saudi Arabia following the downfall of Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq. Noting that US forces - about 8,000 in Kuwait...

ARAB-US RELATIONS - April 16 - War In Iraq Has Cost $20 Bn.(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... Pentagon comptroller Dov Zakheim says the war in Iraq has cost the Pentagon more than $20 bn so far, but in the end should not exceed the $62.5 bn Congress approved for extra military spending last week. He says the biggest expense has been the...

AFGHANISTAN - April 12 - Car Bomb & Shootings Add To Unrest.(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... Opponents of the Kabul government continue their attacks over the weekend, with a car packed with explosives blowing up in Karwan Sarui, just east of the town of Khost, killing the driver and two unidentified Pakistanis and one man from Yemen....

AFGHANISTAN - April 15 - NATO To Command Afghan Mission.(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... NATO agrees to take command of the peacekeeping force. (Until now, the 5,000-strong operation has been led by a different country each six months). The name - Isaf - and mission of the force will not change. Nor will the NATO flag be used. From...

IRAN - April 13 - Tehran Will Not Accept US-Led Govt In Iraq.
April 19, 2003... Mohsen Mirdamadi, a prominent reformist who is also head of the Majlis commission for foreign policy and national security, tells The FT: "An American government in Iraqi territory couldn't be accepted. If an American-led government is...

IRAQ - April 13 - US Forces Attack Tikrit.(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... US marines backed by helicopters and jets launch an all-out assault on the town of Tikrit, stronghold and home town of deposed leader Saddam Hussein. Tikrit, which is 175 km north of Baghdad, is the only urban centre in the country not...

IRAQ - April 13 - US Military Officials Question Saadi.(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... US military officials are interrogating Gen. Amer Hammoudi Al Saadi, the Saddam administration highest-ranking official to have surrendered so far. He is the former head of the chemical weapons programme. Saadi gave himself up to US forces in...

IRAQ - April 14 - Fall Of Tikrit Marks End Of Main Combat.(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... Senior Pentagon official Maj.-Gen. Stanley McChrystal says all major combat engagements are probably over following the fall of Tikrit, adding: "Tikrit was the last area where we anticipated seeing major combat formations. I think we will move...

IRAQ - April 15 - US Shuts Down Pipeline To Syria.
April 19, 2003... US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says US military engineers have been ordered to shut a pipeline sending oil to Syria in violation of pre-war UN sanctions. Rumsfeld says no effort is made to destroy the pipeline, which was opened in 2000....

IRAQ - April 15 - Activists' Meet Back Democracy.
April 19, 2003... The first meeting of long-exiled activists, held in the shadow of a 4,000-year-old ziggurat near the biblical birthplace of Abraham and presided over by Zalmay Khalilzad, a special adviser to US Pres. Bush, issues a statement supporting a...

IRAQ - April 15 - Abu Abbas Seized.(Abu Abbas belonged to the Palestinian Liberation Front)
April 19, 2003... US forces in Baghdad capture Abu Abbas, who led a faction of the Palestine Liberation Front in the 1980s and 1990s and has been living in Baghdad since 2000. (He was the leader of a Palestinian terrorist group responsible for the 1985 attack on...

IRAQ - April 16 - Bush Calls On UN To Scrap Sanctions.(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... US Pres. Bush calls on the UN Security Council to end Iraq's economic isolation and remove the sanctions regime imposed on Baghdad after Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait 13 years ago. Diplomats at the UN say the Security Council is still deeply...

IRAQ - April 17 - Saddam Half-Brother Caught.(Barzan Ibrahim Hasan Al Tikriti)
April 19, 2003... US marines and special operations forces capture Barzan Ibrahim Hasan Al Tikriti, a former intelligence chief and a half-brother of Saddam Hussein who is believed to have helped Saddam hide billions of dollars in other countries. Al Tikriti is...

IRAQ - April 18 - US Forces Release 927 Prisoners.(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... The Pentagon says in a statement that the US military has released 927 Iraqi prisoners, leaving 6,850 still in custody. The military determined that the 927 who are released have not been involved in combat. Most of them are civilians who were...

ISRAEL - April 13 - Shalom Visits Ankara.(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... FM Silvan Shalom arrives in Ankara to meet with his Turkish counterpart, Abdullah Gul, Pres. Ahmet Necdet Sezer, and PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

ISRAEL - April 14 - Israel Demands US Take Action Against Syria.(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... Israel demands that Washington take action against Damascus, with Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz telling Maariv: "We have a long list of issues that we are thinking of demanding of the Syrians and it is proper that it should be done through the...

LEBANON - April 16 - Hariri Asked To Form Cabinet.(Rafik Hariri)(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... Pres. Emile Lahoud asks PM Rafik Hariri to form a new cabinet to replace his own, setting the stage for Hariri's return to office. Hariri submitted his resignation on April 15, and Lahoud asked him to remain as caretaker. A change of the...

PALESTINE - April 18 - Arafat Close To Agreeing Cabinet Choice.(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... PA officials say Pres. Arafat is close to reaching agreement with PM Mahmoud Abbas over the composition of a new government they hope will be unveiled within days. (A succession of US, European and Arab leaders and officials have put pressure...

RUSSIA - April 13 - Moscow Hardens Position On Debt Forgiveness.(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... The Kremlin hardens its position on the forgiveness of debts it is owed by Iraq, with FM Alexei Kudrin saying the write-offs should be matched by reductions in debts Moscow is paying, which were incurred by the Soviet Union. During talks with...

RUSSIA - April 17 - Veteran Liberal Leader Shot Dead.(Sergei Yushenkov killed)(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... Sergei Yushenkov, a veteran liberal politician and leader of a staunchly anti-Kremlin party, is shot dead in an attack that police officials say is the work of a contract killer. Yushenkov, whose Liberal Russia Party was founded by exiled...

SYRIA - April 13 - US Shifts Focus To Damascus' Role In Iraq War.(US relations with Syria)
April 19, 2003... Washington makes the strongest accusations yet about Damascus' meddling in the US-led war against Iraq. In a marked shift in focus, US Pres. Bush says the US believes there are chemical weapons in Syria. Bush, US Defence Secretary Donald...

SYRIA - April 15 - US Softens Criticism.(US relations towards Syria)(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... US State Secretary Colin Powell says, "there is no war plan" against Damascus, adding: "Iraq was a unique case, where it wasn't just a matter of a dictator being there, it was a dictator terrorising his people, raping and pillaging his own...

TURKEY - April 16 - Ankara To Push Hard For Iraq Reconstruction Contracts.(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... The Foreign Ministry says in a statement that Ankara has lost $30 bn in trade with Iraq after the 1991 Gulf war, and is preparing to compete for a substantial share in the business of rebuilding Iraq. The Foreign Ministry appointed Ahmet Okcu,...

TURKEY - April 16 - NATO To End Defence Deployment.(Brief Article)
April 19, 2003... The NATO alliance decides to end its 3-month defensive deployment in the country, after Ankara said it no longer felt threatened. The deployment included four AWACS surveillance planes from Germany, which are joint NATO assets, along with four...

ARABS-ISRAEL - April 20 - Six Killed In Israeli Raid On Gaza Strip.
April 26, 2003... One Israeli soldier and 5 Palestinians are killed in Israeli military incursion into the Rafah refugee camp in the Gaza Strip. Around 40 armoured vehicles and tanks accompanied by attack helicopters raid the refugee camp near the Egyptian...

ARABS-ISRAEL - April 24 - Suicide Bomb Rocks Israeli Train Station.(Brief Article)
April 26, 2003... A Palestinian suicide bomber blows himself up when confronted by an Israeli security guard at a commuter train station in Kfar Saba early in the morning, killing them both and wounding 13 Israelis. The bomber was identified as Ahmad Khatib, 18,...